Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Warnings about waterways in mass eel deaths, government funding approved for Christchurch stadium, and two Covid-19 tests come back negative. Frankly, this is one of the most visually horrifying environmental stories I’ve ever seen. Farah Hancock at Newsroom has looked at the extreme pressure being put on waterways … Read more
We review the entire country and culture of New Zealand, one thing at a time. Today, Alice Neville and Matthew McAuley chugalug some new-to-NZ (kind of) Japanese coffee in a can. As a highly cultured woman of the world, I have of course been to Japan. And I can tell you that the rumours are … Read more
By reference to history and science, we predict which way tonight’s crunch game in the Rugby World Cup is likely to go. 1 The semifinal falls two days after the New Zealand release of JoJo Rabbit, the new movie by acclaimed filmmaker and Hurricanes talisman Taika Waititi. The last time an England versus All Blacks … Read more
What’s really stood out for me being back in Tokyo is Japan’s spectators, writes Richard Light, professor of sport coaching at the University of Canterbury. I first noticed the unique qualities of the Japanese crowds when I was a rugby coach here in the 1990s. Later, with the admission of the Japanese team, the Sunwolves, … Read more
The organisers of the Rugby World Cup have made the unprecedented decision to cancel two of the final pool games, citing safety concerns as a super typhoon threatens Japan. What’s this? Rugby CANCELLED? In my day we walked six miles barefoot in the snow to play rugby. The goal posts were made from old … Read more
The history of tattoo art in Japan is deep-rooted and complex – and so is the cultural aversion to tattooed bodies, explains Brian Ashcraft, the author of a book on subject. Tonight, when the All Blacks take the field, they’ll likely be covering up. In order not to run afoul of Japanese cultural niceties, players … Read more
Western companies trademarking culturally significant words and phrases? It’s not as uncommon as you think. Here are just four examples from the past year. Air New Zealand & Kia Ora No word in te reo has had more mainstream cut through than our national greeting. Now, Air New Zealand is attempting to go one step … Read more
Terrace House is so real that it can’t be anything but fake. Uther Dean writes about what makes the Japanese Netflix dating reality show so addictive. Do you know what a parasocial relationship is? Because I promise that you’re in heaps of them. Parasocial relationships are the ones that occur between you and the people … Read more
The widespread use of the imperial flag suggests that New Zealanders’ knowledge of the second world war is incomplete, writes Rebekah Jaung. For many people from Asian countries it is a symbol of hate akin to a swastika, yet every couple of months I see a local person or company brandishing it. It’s been used … Read more
After 15 years, the satirical video game Metal Wolf Chaos XD is finally being released worldwide. Today its depiction of a crazed, militaristic America seems more prescient than ever, writes Sam Brooks. In gaming, very few things are truly inaccessible. If someone knows there’s a game they might love, they’ll do their best to get … Read more
Pre-meeting meetings sound like bureaucracy gone mad to Westerners, but the Japanese method of decision-making means everyone is brought along together. From the moment you first arrive in Japan you realise that your conceptions, whatever they are, need to be thrown aside. I ended up living for a total of five years in Osaka and … Read more
Auckland sake sommelier Wayne Shennen is on a mission to spread the gospel of the oft-misunderstood Japanese tipple. Like many folk, Wayne Shennen used to hate chardonnay. “My personal experience was that I knew it was rubbish, because I’d had 10 bad chardonnays. Then 15 years later I tried it again and had a decent … Read more
Patsy Stone visiting two of the most beautiful places in the world? Sold! Tara Ward watches Joanna Lumley’s TWO travel series which you can watch on Lightbox right now. Last night I dreamed I saw Patsy Stone trapped in a warm embrace with an over-sized, dancing seal. The sun was shining, Patsy was grinning wildly, … Read more
Rebecca Inoue-Palmer writes about raising her daughter in a Japanese-Pākehā family, and why she and her husband are dedicated to maintaining their child’s link to her Asian heritage. Two mornings a week, my daughter carries two bags to her Wellington primary school. One is a lightweight backpack, carrying her lunchbox, drink bottle and the usual … Read more
With the rise of China, Japan has taken something of a backseat in trade discussions. Lawyer Steven Moe says New Zealand’s relationship with the world’s third largest economy is still going strong, but may need some TLC. Whenever foreign investment or overseas strategies are mentioned in New Zealand boardrooms these days it is most likely … Read more
On the eve of his appearance at a Victoria University event in Wellington, comic book author Fumio Obata talks to Guy Somerset about his ongoing project chronicling the aftermath of the Fukushima tsunami and nuclear disaster. At art school, Fumio Obata was taught the importance of “the theme, having something of your own, something only … Read more
An essay by Thom Shackleford on the relationship between the lost, desolate characters in the latest book by Japanese superstar writer Haruki Murakami, and the ghostliness of Japan. The densely inhabited cities of Japan are miracles of metropolitan safety and goodwill, populated almost exclusively by people who are polite and friendly to the point of excess. … Read more
Calum Henderson talks to Yuko Inaba, the rugby-loving artist behind the delightful internet presence Nadegata Penguin. In the cutthroat world of art it is important for an artist to find their niche. Yuko Inaba’s niche is painting rugby players as cute penguins. The Tokyo watercolourist is prolific, sharing a new painting on Facebook, Twitter or … Read more
What will popular music sound and look like in 10 or 20 years time? Gareth Shute looks to Japan, where the era of the ‘authentic’ rock musician has already come to an end. Late last year, I was visiting Ebisu, Tokyo and wanted to see what acts were playing nearby. I discovered online what I … Read more
From Chinese 3D manufacturing to Korean soap operas to Japanese street fashion, the 21st century belongs to Asia. Little wonder, then, that an increasing number of young New Zealanders are ditching the UK OE and heading to Asia instead. In the second of a two part series on The Asia OE, Catherine McGregor talks to … Read more
He’s fresh from a shopping holiday in Japan and Dan Taipua has seen some awesome, awesome shit. In the 2nd and final part of this series he passes on all that he has learnt to any retro game tourists thinking of hitting the Japanese arcades. While walking through central Osaka I was stopped in the street by a … Read more
Fresh from a whirlwind trip to Japan, Dan Taipua pens this primer on what to take and where to go for old school console booty and ephemera. This is part one of a two part series about retro video game tourism in Japan. Each year more and more kiwis are making Japanese cities their metropolitan destination of … Read more